Welcome - If this is your first visit you will find a "Welcome Introduction' message and a link to "Prayer Reflections" located on top right side of page.
My prayer today is that "Abba will saturate you with His grace, mercy & peace. Please sit down comfortably, relax with a cuppa & enjoy!

Saturday, April 13, 2013

Garments of Grace

Nearly all of us have been here at one time or another embarrassed, humiliated, and heartbroken.

Some of these moments involve simple pride and embarrassment.

After over 35 years of speaking around the world, I still feel the embarrassment of my first public speech. Cub Scouts... explaining our project... making a little boat... and I remember exactly what I said that night. "My name is Phil Ware and..." There was nothing said after the "and"! I stood there with my face turning red, my insides quivering, and wanting to be swallowed by a large hole in the floor. I couldn't say a word. In front of my friends and family, I shut down, then ran out... humiliated and embarrassed, vowing to never speak again. While the sting remains, my vow didn't hold... thankfully!

Some of these moments, however, involve unspeakably deep wounds that came from someone very close to us betraying us, abandoning us in our time of need, or seeking to do us harm. What makes it even harder is that at one time, they had been committed to us as a friend, business partner, or a spouse and have now used that closeness to rip our guts out.

Sometimes, our humiliation is actually brought on by our own failure that brought deep wounds to others and destroyed something precious between us. These unspeakably deep wounds can take forever to heal.

They can be re-opened by a thought, a memory, a song, a poem, a smell, a place... or a jillion other things. Yes, these are unspeakably deep wounds of humiliation and hurt and failure and live with us, just under the surface of our facades.

This week, many of us have remembered Jesus on the way to the cross. He had been journeying toward the cross for quite some time. He has been warning his closest friends and followers that he must go to Jerusalem and die (Mark 8:31-32; Mark 9:30-32; Mark 10:32-34).

But now, this awful and certain future is near the plans are underway and the dark forces behind this awful set of events are already in motion. And nearly everyone close to Jesus whether friend or foe is about to fail him through betrayal, denial, abandonment, mockery, and murder.

Jesus' band of friends and followers sleeps in the garden, unable to stay awake and pray with Jesus as he wrestles with his dark destiny, and as he submits himself to the will of God above his own desires and fears. Even his closest friends, Peter and James and John, cannot stay awake with him!

Judas arrives with his retinue of cowardly co-conspirators the soldiers from the Temple and the priests there to do in the night with swords and torches what they would not dare do in the daylight. Judas betrays his Teacher, his Lord, with a kiss! He will later hang himself for betraying Jesus for 30 pieces of silver so deep is Judas' despair with his own failure and self-humiliation.

As Jesus steps forward and offers himself to the arresting soldiers, his closest friends abandon him, desert him, and run for their lives as the Gospel of Mark says so hauntingly, "Then everyone deserted him and ran away" (Mark 14:50).

They will eventually hole up in the upper room to hide in confusion, disarray, and despair, not once remembering his promise to rise from the dead clueless of how or where to regain their lives from the dark night they had entered.

Peter, who had emphatically proclaimed that he would be loyal no matter what the others in their little group would do, is now about to deny his Lord for the third time. His eyes meet Jesus' eyes from across the courtyard after Peter's final betrayal. Jesus' "Rock" then hears the rooster crow. His soul is torn apart by the shearing forces of shame, confusion, and grief as he watches Jesus handed over to be crucified.

Peter then breaks down and weeps uncontrollably.

There is one verse, one simple and mysterious reference in the Gospel of Mark, that speaks to all of us and to all of this this spineless, visionless, abandonment of the Son of God. They leave him alone, abandoned to face the hosts of hell and their human partners in the Sanhedrin, the High Priest's household, Herod's rule as King of the Jews, and Pilate's procuratorship as the enforcing power behind the Roman boot of oppression.

When all Jesus' men have turned and run away from the Lord during his arrest, there is one young man who still follows. Just one. All the rest are gone. Presumably referring to himself, John Mark, the author of the Gospel, writes:

And a young man, with nothing but a linen garment, was following Jesus. When they seized him, he fled naked, leaving the garment behind (Mark 14:51-52).

These are intriguing verses.Two haunting verses that serve as powerful reminders of the dangers of the night for Jesus' friends and followers.

They are also reminders of the absolute "aloneness" that Jesus faces as he goes through the barbaric hours ahead. And for Mark, they become a way to say, "We were all exposed and naked, failures and disappointments to ourselves and to Jesus. Revealed for what we were pretenders and not protectors, fearful instead of faithful, and forsakers instead of friends. Seen for what we were, there was nothing left to do but hide in fear!"

Jesus' closest friends are exposed in the naked light of truth! Embarrassed. Humiliated. Hiding. Jesus goes to face his own naked light of truth on Golgotha. He will be stripped of clothes three times before the ordeal is done.

He is first stripped of his clothes so they can put a purple robe on him, strike him with rods, spit upon him, and mock him (Mark 15:17-19).

He is then stripped of his purple robe and his clothes placed back on him (Mark 15:20).

He is stripped a third time, this time given nothing to wear so he would hang naked and exposed, humiliated and battered, as he died before a hostile, morbidly gleeful crowd of onlookers while the soldiers cast lots to see who would win his clothes (Mark 15:24).

Jesus dies alone... humiliated... brutalized... and exposed for all the world to see. No secrets. No hidden wounds just gaping, horrid, fully exposed wounds. No privacy. No modesty. Inhumanity proudly displaying its latest victim, writhing in the throes of death, alone, on a barbaric tree, for all of us and in front of all of us.

And the connection of grace that transforms these moments of humiliation? The redeeming virtue in all of this brutality, inhumanity, and barbarism?

Two truths, both powerfully symbolized by the garments left behind. First come the garments of humiliation... the dark night of humiliation... now shared humiliation... seen in the garments left behind by John Mark and Jesus' garments gambled over by unnamed soldiers.

For all of us who have had those moments of embarrassment, humiliation, abandonment, and failure, we find Jesus meeting us in the darkness of our worst moments, when we are fully exposed, naked before the world in our own failure. Jesus hangs there, letting us know that he knows what it is like to be there exposed, humiliated, and alone to face those who mock us.

For every John Mark that has run away, naked in the night, afraid of tomorrow, fully humiliated and embarrassed, Jesus speaks softly, with arms outstretched, and says: "See, look at my scars. I received them before the eyes of every gawker and every mocker. I know how it feels, but I am here to let you know how it heals!"

Next come the garments of grace... of hope and life and new days with bright dawns.

Early on Sunday morning, while it was still dark, Mary Magdalene came to the tomb and found that the stone had been rolled away from the entrance. She ran and found Simon Peter and the other disciple, the one whom Jesus loved. She said, "They have taken the Lord's body out of the tomb, and we don't know where they have put him!"

Peter and the other disciple started out for the tomb. They were both running, but the other disciple outran Peter and reached the tomb first. He stooped and looked in and saw the linen wrappings lying there, but he didn't go in. Then Simon Peter arrived and went inside. He also noticed the linen wrappings lying there, while the cloth that had covered Jesus' head was folded up and lying apart from the other wrappings. Then the disciple who had reached the tomb first also went in, and he saw and believed... (John 20:1-8 NLT).

Jesus left behind his garments of death! The grave clothes, the linen cloth that Jesus was wrapped in just like the linen cloth John Mark had stripped off him are left behind. The cloth for his head is neatly folded. There is no rush, no fear, no worry for the risen Son of Man. He neatly folds this head piece as testimony for those who find it. "I am risen," it says, "and I am alive for you!"

What powerful symbol! What powerful truth! What powerful hope!

Our task is to leave behind the garments of humiliation, failure, and death as we look in the empty tomb of Jesus and see the garments the risen Lord left behind to leave those behind and believe!Humiliation has faded into gray, and fresh hope has dawned, bringing the promise of new life, clothed in Christ and his righteousness! No wonder the apostle Paul tells us:

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come: The old has gone, the new is here! (2 Corinthians 5:17 NIV).

Resurrection happens, not just for Jesus, but for all of us who need fresh hope after our own failures and humiliations! But how can this be so? How can this be true? It is because we've left the garments of sin and death behind, and by faith we have clothed ourselves in the garments of resurrection!

So in Christ Jesus you are all children of God through faith, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ (Galatians 3:26-27 NIV).

Do you know what it is like to be humiliated, exposed as a failure, and an embarrassment to yourself and to all who know you?

Do you know what it is like to disappoint yourself or others in how you've handled a painful and difficult time?

Do you wrestle with doubts about your value or worthiness and feel that everyone sees you as less than what you want to be?

Do you struggle with the painful loss of someone you love and crave one last word, one last moment to say what was left unsaid or to fix one last thing that was left unfinished between you?

None of us not you, not me none of us has to keep wearing our garments of loss, shame, failure, and disappointment anymore.

The angels invite us, just as they did Peter and the beloved disciple, to look into the empty tomb, to see garments of death left neatly behind, and believe a new day has dawned!

Our Jesus is risen. Death has been defeated. And grace has brought life to what once held us captive!

My Blog List

Welcome Introduction

Welcome to a new series I have started called "Reflection Jewels" that I believe Abba has laid on my heart to do.

My prayer for you is that as you read these "Reflection Jewels' they will motivate & inspire you to read Gods word more often. Also you will receive fresh revelation, direction were needed & encouragement - enjoy!

Many ask, "How do you know what to send or post that just meets my need?" The truth is I don’t - All I know is that I receive many messages & after praying & reading I feel led to lay aside certain select messages written by many anointed men & women of God. At a later date I just follow those gentle prompts of the Holy Spirit when to post - if I do not have peace I delay.

God knows the needs of each of His children and the word or encouragement is already prepared waiting for you. Remember You are precious to Abba!

One day I was watching a fascinating program called "Survival In the Bush' presented by Malcolm Douglas in the wild rugged outback of Australia. - In one of the stories he helped a lady find small deposits of gold using a 'gold detector' - they also had great fun panning for gold in the river this left deposits of murky lumps of rock in their bowl. Afterwards they then went back to her small factory & went step by step through a very old process were there collection was cleaned, tumbled, filtered, treated with chemicals this process continued until till there were only small nuggets of gold remaining, these then went through another process of heating until at the end she had a solid block of pure gold.

As I was watching I kept thinking how reading Gods word the Bible can be compared to this process. As we read the word "panning the gold in the stream" we find precious words 'gold dust'. The more we continue reading, meditating, soaking & studying Gods word we find more precious nuggets of gold or jewels. Thus the idea to call these messages "Jewels' was born.

I strongly believe the Lord is putting out a call to His people (all of us) to come into a deeper place spiritually, giving us a deeper understanding, and a deeper love for Him. "Deep calleth unto deep.." (Psalms 42:7a)

One of the ways we can do this is to read & meditate or reflect upon the Word of God. This should be a part of our regular and constant spiritual discipline.

To those who already read the word frequently may you be refreshed & revisit some of those familiar passages with fresh eyes.

I found helpful reading and comparing a different translation to my usual daily trusted version. I also found it refreshing with a different bible not having my pencil & highlighter marks to distract from fresh revelation. I suggest before reading you ask the Holy Spirit to reveal to you new truths as you mine for new jewels in His word. Be blessed as you read today!

Psalm 119:11 says,Your Word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You. As we become soaked & filled with the word in our hearts the Spirit of God will enlighten our understanding & when needed bring to mind the word that is needed.

The Scriptures describe the kingdom of God as treasure. Matthew 13:44-46 NIV" The kingdom of heaven is like treasure hidden in a field. When a man found it, he hid it again, and then in his joy went and sold all he had and bought that field. "Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant looking for fine pearls. When he found one of great value, he went away and sold everything he had and bought it.

Suggestion: Pray as you read and meditate on God's Word. Praise God for what He has revealed of Himself and pray for strength and wisdom to obey His direction. Try also reading some prayers of the Bible (Matt. 6:9-13; Ephesians I: 15-23; 3: 14-21 and many of the Psalms).

Please note: Some of the messages have links that if used may take you away from the message – to return just click the ‘back’ button at the top left hand corner of your screen.

If you wish to return to the Home page of the SWPW site lease scan to the top of the page & press the arrow ‘back” or go direct via the link: http://www.swpwarriors.com/

Please feel free to print out or copy the ‘reflections’ for personal use. All messages are referenced (were known) & permission sought to use. I do ask you to respect at all times copyright of all Authors & the SWPW site.

If you would like to be on my mailing list for "Reflection Jewel updates' & encouragements please write to me at

Bible Translations

Which Version Should we Use:

I do not wish to get stuck in debate which Bible Translation one should use - Personally I prefer & regularly use the King James Version of the bible - however when studying a scripture I like to read & compare other translations - each must decide for themselves - please find a list below of abbreviations & what they mean:

Bible Translations:

KJV - King James VersionNKJV - New King James VersionNIV - New International VersionNLT - New Living TranslationCEV - Contemporary English VersionESV - English Standard VersionMSG - The MessageNASB - New American Standard BibleRSV - Revised Standard Version